Tag Archives for Gluten-free Cupcakes

The cupcake craze may have been replaced by donuts, but I still hold a fondness in my heart for the good ole’ cuppie. To save word count, and your precious time, I’m going to skip a big introduction for these cuties and get on to the recipes. I will say this though, I am experimenting with recipes for a wedding cake that I’m making, and this recipe was too good not to share. A vegan, gluten/soy/nut-free vanilla cake, filled with a homemade fruit jam, and topped with an orange scented buttercream. Get ready for a sugar high. These cupcakes will fool the masses, and are perfect for birthday parties!

Now, you could definitely choose to use a store-bought jam to fill these cupcakes (or choose not to fill them at all). But if you have the time, why not try making my easy Apricot Strawberry Jam?

In a medium or large saucepan, add the apples, apricots, strawberries and orange juice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 1 hour, stirring once or twice. Add the sugar, coconut oil and xanthan gum and cook for another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour hot jam into clean glass jars, let jars sit on your countertop for 15-20 minutes before transferring to your refrigerator to chill completely. (If you’d like to process a hot water bath and can/preserve this jam, skip the refrigerator step and check out the instructions in this post). Use jam within a few weeks to a month (unless preserved for longer shelf life). Make sure jam is cold before filling cupcakes.

*If your kitchen isn’t as warm as mine is, you may need to melt your coconut oil (if it’s in a solid state). The way I do this is in a double-boiler, or in a glass bowl atop a saucepan with simmering water. Place your chunk of coconut oil in the glass bowl and let it melt to a liquid.

For the cupcakes, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a cupcake pan with 12 paper liners. In a large bowl, combine the flours: sorghum, millet, arrowroot, cornstarch. Sift together, then add the xanthan, baking powder, baking soda and salt and combine thoroughly. In a separate bowl, vigorously whisk the coconut oil with the sugar until well blended. Then, add the coconut milk, orange juice and vanilla. Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and slowly pour the wet into the dry. Use a wire whisk to mix the batter until very few lumps remain and you have a smooth batter. Fill the cupcake liners 3/4’s way and bake for 25-27 minutes, until tops are golden.

Allow to cool 10 minutes in the pan before moving to a cooling rack. Cupcakes must be completely cooled before frosting.

To make the buttercream, leave your vegan butter on your countertop for 10 or more minutes to become softened. In an electric stand mixer, whip the vegan butter for a few seconds, then add one cup of the powdered sugar, and whip some more. Then add 3 tablespoons of the coconut milk or cream, the extracts and zest. Whip. Then add the rest of the powdered sugar and whip until fluffy. If buttercream is a bit dry, add another tablespoon of coconut milk. Use right-away on cooled cupcakes.

To fill cupcakes, refer to the image above. I use a large piping bag tip (bottom-wide-side) to poke holes in the center of the cuppies. Then take a teaspoon of cooled jam and plop it into the center of the cupcake. Repeat until all cupcakes are filled. Frost with my buttercream recipe above.

Several taste testers (none with food allergies or restrictions) agreed these cupcakes were delicious! I think they are pretty great as well. I will say though, if you’re not used to a lot of sugar, these may induce a sugar coma. And while the buttercream looks pretty piped on top, I prefer a thin spread instead. Make these cupcakes for a summer birthday party and your guests will be glad you did!